17-month-old from Columbia dies after car seat strap strangles him, coroner says

A 17-month-old baby from Columbia died this week after being strangled by the strap of his car seat, according to the coroner.

On Sept. 18, Nazir Austin was “placed incorrectly” into his car seat, Richland County Coroner Gary Watts said in a news release. The child was later found to be “unresponsive” in his car seat at his caretaker’s home on Ridgeway Street in Columbia, according to the news release.

Austin was taken in an ambulance to Prisma Health Richland Memorial Hospital, where he died a week later, on the morning of Sept. 25, Watts said in the news release. An autopsy determined that Austin died from asphyxiation due to strangulation by the car seat strap, according to Watts.

The Richland County Sheriff’s Department and the county coroner’s office are still investigating the incident but Watts said the death “appears to be due to a tragic accident.”

This story was originally published September 27, 2019 at 9:03 AM.